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Since taking office in January 2017, President Donald Trump has used an array of new and existing sanctions against Iran, North Korea and others. His Treasury Department, which oversees economic sanctions, has targeted thousands of entities with asset freezes and business bans.

It's rare for a week to go by without the administration announcing new sanctions.

He said this was a "pivot point" in world economic relations, with the U.S. losing its leadership role and opening up the possibility for another nation to pick up the mantle. Asian countries, he said, are deferring to China's perspective on the U.S., and American alliances with European nations are being weakened by Trump's reliance on sanctions.

Although many administrations have relied on sanctions, Trump has used them with zeal at a cost to the U.S., said Liz Rosenberg, the director of the Energy, Economics and Security Program at the Center for a New American Security.

Where the U.S. once coordinated with Europeans on issues such as counterterrorism and nuclear nonproliferation, Trump's sanctions are often one-sided and do not prioritize partnerships, Rosenberg said.